As a Patent Attorney with Freehills Patent Attorneys, Sarah specialises in IP matters for the pharmaceutical and life sciences sectors. Sarah’s current practice involves prosecuting Australian and foreign patent applications and drafting patent specifications. She also assists in the preparation of detailed freedom to operate and validity opinions as well as assisting in patent oppositions.

Prior to joining Freehills in 2011, Sarah worked for three years as a postdoctoral research officer at the Baker IDI Heart and Diabetes Institute. There, her research involved the characterisation of proteins that modulate the activity of the sympathetic nervous system and in particular, the regulation of blood pressure.

She was awarded a PhD in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology in 2007. Her PhD studies, undertaken at the Bio21 Institute, focused on elucidating the evolution of the structure and function of transthyretin-like proteins.

She has also presented at a number of local and international conferences including the annual meetings of The European Society of Hypertension and The Society for Molecular Biology and Evolution.

While completing the Masters of Intellectual Property Law at the University of Melbourne, Sarah was awarded the Frank Pinkerton Scholarship for the best result in the subject Fundamentals of Patent Drafting.

Areas of expertise

• Patents

• Molecular and Cell Biology

• Agribusiness and Agrochemicals

• Biotechnology

• Pharmaceuticals

Qualifications

• Bachelor of Arts (Criminology and History and Philosophy of Science), University of Melbourne

• Bachelor of Science (Biochemistry and Molecular Biology) (Hons), University of Melbourne

• Doctor of Philosophy (Faculty of Medicine), University of Melbourne and The Bio21 Institute